Hospice Saint-Jean

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Portal of the Hospice Saint-Jean

The Hospice Saint-Jean was a hospice on Münstergasse in the Grund district in Luxembourg City . Only city citizens were admitted.

In 1997 the National Museum of Natural History opened its doors in these buildings.

Main article National Museum of Natural History (Luxembourg)

history

The origins go back to 1308. In that year Count Henry VII and his wife Margarete von Brabant decided to build a hospice for sick and poor citizens. A church of the same name was also built, the Church of Saint-Jean. By Baldwin of Luxembourg , the brother of Henry VII., Elector and Bishop of Trier, Church of the ranking was a parish granted with all privileges.

The hospice was originally run by clergymen.

In 1547 the Benedictines of Altmünster Abbey (founded by Conrad I in 1083 and destroyed in 1543) took over the hospice. They had to build a new hospital there, which was completed in 1550. It turned out that the new building was too small and unsuitable for the purpose it was supposed to serve. The fact that the hospital was used as a plague hospital in 1626 discouraged other patients from receiving care there. In 1667 the hospital was completely dismantled and the church's title parish church was withdrawn in favor of the new Neumünster Abbey that was built next to it. The situation was so bad that the Provincial Council and Luxembourg City asked residents to donate. This campaign was a great success and in 1669 new buildings were erected in Münstergasse. This was the first time that doctors and nurses who worked in the hospital were mentioned directly.

On July 6, 1672, nuns were officially hired to provide hospital care, on condition that they also provide outpatient medical care in the city.

During the conquest of the city by Louis XIV from France in 1684, the buildings were so badly damaged that the hospital's patients had to be moved to the fish market and Haus Zorn. After the hospital had become habitable again in 1689, the sick and wounded soldiers who had previously been cared for in the French military hospital in Bonneweg monastery initially found protection there until the new military hospital in Pfaffenthal was completed.

In 1756 the hospital had 18 beds, which were looked after by 20 nuns.

During the French occupation (1795-1814) the hospice was used as an orphanage. It was also used as a prison for clergymen who refused to take the oath of office of the French revolutionary government, as a shelter for prostitutes and vagrants, and as an educational facility for girls.

On July 30, 1843, the patients of the hospice and the nursing staff, the sisters of the Order of Elizabeth , were moved to the buildings of the Holy Spirit Monastery in Pfaffenthal (Mohrfelsstrasse), a house that still exists today as a retirement and nursing home.

In 1851 the hospice became a women's prison with a treatment center for sexually transmitted diseases. The sisters of the Franciscan Order were appointed as guards, they served there continuously from June 1, 1851 to July 15, 1978.

The women's prison in Grund existed until May 12, 1984, when the new prison in Schrassig was opened.

building

The building was declared a National Monument on January 15, 1988.

portal

The main entrance of the Natural History Museum at No. 25 on Münstergasse consists of a monumental portal between two Corinthian columns. Three coats of arms can be seen in the gable of the portal. The upper one is the coat of arms of Charles II of Spain, who ruled Luxembourg in 1674 when the hospice was rebuilt. On the left the coat of arms of the Duchy of Luxembourg with the red lion. On the right is the coat of arms of Philipp de Croy , the then governor of Luxembourg.

The coat of arms above the portal.

Below is a text that is flanked by two statues: Mary on the left and John the Baptist on the right .

Labeling on the portal
ANCIEN HOSPICE SAINT-JEAN
FONDE A CET ENTDROIT EN 1308
PAR HENRI VII DE LUXEMBOURG ET MARGUERITE DE BRABANT
RECONSTRUIT EN 1674
PAR LES RELIGIEUSES DE SAINTE ELISABETH
QUI L'ONT DESSERVI JUSQU'EN 1843
ANNEE DU TRANSFERT TO PFAFFENTHAL

with the following translation into German:

FORMER HOSPIZ SAINT-JEAN
FOUNDED IN THIS LOCATION IN 1308
BY HENRI VII OF LUXEMBOURG AND MARGARET OF BRABANT
REBUILT IN 1674
FROM THE SISTERS OF SAINT ELISABETH
WHO SERVED HIM UNTIL 1843
THE YEAR OF MOVING TO PFAFFENTHAL

Niche with a statue

Under a niche with a statue of Saint Sebastian to the left of the entrance is a chronogram with the year 1674:

100 + 50 + 1000 + 5 + 1 + 100 + 1 + 50 + 1 + 1 + 50 + 50 + 1 + 1 + 5 + 1 + 50 + 100 + 1 + 1 + 100 + 5 = 1674.

Niche to the left of the portal
CaroLo regnante
Montereo VICes regIas beLgIo gerente
phILLIppo ahrenbergIo gVbernante
hospItaLe SanCto IohannI saCratVr

with the following translation into German:

During the reign of Emperor Karl,
Monterrey rules Belgium,
Philippe d'Arenberg manages [Luxembourg],
This hospital is dedicated to St. John.

literature

  • Beck, H., 1995. L'Hospice St.-Jean au Grund. ons stad 50: 2–3.
  • Kugener, H., Nursing and Hospitals in the Middle Ages and Modern Times. ons stad 50: 4-9.
  • Pauly, Michel , 2012. St. Elisabeth and St. Johann - two hospitals in the medieval city of Luxembourg. ons stad 100: 14-17. ( Pdf )
  • Pauly, M. & P. ​​Bertemes (coord.), 2009. De l'Hospice Saint-Jean à l'Hospice civil. 700 years of hospital history in Luxembourg City. Editions mediArt, 116 pp. ISBN 978-99959-635-1-4 .
  • Spielmann, A., 1995. La prison pour femme - ou le tout carcéral. ons stad 50: 10–11.
  • Schaus, Raymond, 2010. Au Stadgrond autrefois: Les racines de la ville de Luxembourg - Un survol historique. The waiting room 14/2292: 5 (April 29, 2010).

Web links

Commons : Hospice Saint-Jean  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Website of the National Museum of Natural History of Luxembourg

Individual evidence

  1. Service des sites et monuments nationaux: List of immeubles et objets classés Monuments nationaux ou inscrits à l'Inventaire supplémentaire. (Version of July 1, 2020).
  2. cf. Bernhard Peters Gallery No. 1329 (photos of beautiful old coats of arms). URL: http://www.welt-der-wappen.de/Heraldik/Galerien2/galerie1329.htm